Bills, Packers Request QBs Coach Interview with Cardinals’ Connor Senger
The Bills and Packers both requested to interview Cardinals passing game coordinator Connor Senger for their quarterbacks coach vacancies, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Senger, 30, has worked closely with Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray over the past four seasons. Senger arrived in Arizona in 2022 as a coaching fellow and moved up in each of the last three offseasons. He became a quality control coach in 2022, the assistant quarterbacks coach in 2024, and the pass game coordinator in 2025.
The Cardinals’ air attack has struggled for the most of Senger’s time in Arizona, though Murray has only played in 41 games in that span.
Before joining the Cardinals, Senger spent time with a number of college teams. In 2017, began his coaching career at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, a Division III program for whom he started at quarterback for the previous two seasons. He worked for two more D-III schools – Carroll and Wisconsin-Whitewater – before a two-year stint at North Dakota State, which preceded his entrance to the NFL.
The jobs in both Buffalo and Green Bay offer the appeal of working with clear face-of-the-franchise quarterbacks in Josh Allen and Jordan Love. The latter has not reached the same heights as the former, but both are under contract through at least 2028. Success as one of the two’s coach could lead to an offensive coordinator by then, if not sooner. To that point, Senger called plays at the East-West Shrine Bowl this week. While that is certainly not the same to a full-time coordinator gig, it shows that Senger is viewed by some as a potential future OC.
Bills To Hire Pete Carmichael Jr. As OC
Just a couple days into his tenure as the Bills’ head coach, Joe Brady has already found his offensive coordinator. The team has agreed to terms with Pete Carmichael Jr., Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports.
Carmichael, who spent the past two years as a senior offensive assistant with the Broncos, has worked with Brady in the past. The two were on Sean Payton‘s staff in New Orleans from 2017-18, when Carmichael was the Saints’ offensive coordinator and Brady served as an offensive assistant.
This will be the second NFL O-coordinator job for the 54-year-old Carmichael, who held the post in New Orleans from 2009-23. Carmichael won’t call the plays in Buffalo, however, as Brady will continue handling those duties in 2026.
Brady has run the Bills’ offense since taking over for the fired Ken Dorsey midway into the 2023 season. The Bills promoted the 36-year-old to head coach on Tuesday to replace the ousted Sean McDermott.
Brady will have a lot on his plate as a rookie head coach, but the hiring of Carmichael will add a trusted and experienced voice to his offensive staff. Carmichael began his NFL career as a tight ends coach and offensive assistant in Cleveland in 2000. He went on to serve in various positions with the then-Redskins and Chargers before Payton, then a rookie HC, tabbed him as the Saints’ quarterbacks coach in 2006.
Carmichael spent the vast majority of his 18-year Saints tenure working with future Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees. He’ll now join a team with another superstar signal-caller in Josh Allen, who was at the helm of an offense that finished fourth in scoring and yards in 2025. The Bills also had the league’s leading rusher in James Cook, though the receiver position was a problem throughout the campaign.
Slot target Khalil Shakir was the only wideout on the team to reach the 700-yard mark during the season. He continued as the Bills’ most productive option during a two-game playoff run that ended with a 33-30 loss to Carmichael and the Broncos in the divisional round.
The Bills likely expected second-year receiver Keon Coleman, the 33rd pick in 2024, to take a step forward. Instead, though, Coleman caught just 38 passes for 404 yards and four touchdowns in 13 games. Professionalism has been an issue for Coleman, who was a healthy scratch on four occasions in 2025.
After the firing of McDermott, owner Terry Pegula revealed “the coaching staff pushed to draft Keon.” General manager Brandon Beane then took ownership of the pick in saying it was his decision. Regardless, Coleman’s future in Buffalo seemed in doubt after Pegula publicly called him out. Now, though, it appears the soon-to-be 23-year-old will remain part of the Bills’ receiving corps next season.
“I told Keon when I got hired, the best thing that happened to Keon Coleman was me being his head coach,” Brady said Thursday (via Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN). “I was one of the ones that stood on the table for Keon Coleman, and I believe in Keon Coleman.”
If we’re to take Brady’s comments at face value, Coleman will be among the players he and Carmichael work with in 2026. Meanwhile, with the loss of Carmichael, Payton and the Broncos are now in position to replace multiple offensive staffers after falling one win shy of a Super Bowl. Payton fired offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi on Monday. Bills QBs coach Ronald Curry is among the candidates to become the Broncos’ OC, though it’s unclear if Brady considered him for the same job before he hired Carmichael.
Bills Expect To Exercise TE Dalton Kincaid’s Fifth-Year Option
A first-round pick three years ago, Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid is heading into the final guaranteed year of his rookie contract, and Buffalo will soon be faced with the decision of whether or not to exercise his fifth-year option. In an interview yesterday, general manager Brandon Beane indicated that Kincaid’s option would likely be picked up. 
After an impressive rookie season, in which he finished with the second-most receptions on the team (73) and the third-most receiving yards (673), Kincaid has struggled to find that same level of success in Years 2 & 3. A lot of that has been due to injuries that have kept him off the field or even just limited what he could do while on the field. In just three fewer games in his sophomore campaign, the Utah product only caught 44 passes for 448 yards as he dealt with issues in both knees.
In the offseason, then-head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane told Kincaid he needed to improve his strength. He worked with the team’s strength and conditioning coach Will Greenberg towards that goal, but ultimately, he missed one more game in 2025 than he did in the year prior as his PCL tear from 2024 continued to plague him.
Despite the injuries continuing to bother him, Kincaid flashed the talent this year that got him drafted in the first round back in 2023. He caught five touchdown passes in 12 games and then grabbed two more in the postseason. Beane noted Kincaid’s overall influence on the offense besides his personal stat contributions, claiming that the Bills averaged seven more points going in the playoffs with Kincaid on the field and noting that the team was 2-3 in games in which Kincaid did not play.
Beane once again stressed the importance of getting Kincaid healthy and expressed his desire to “armor him” as best they can. Regardless of the injuries, Beane seems to believe that Kincaid’s talent shines through as he claimed he doesn’t see any reason why they wouldn’t pick up Kincaid’s fifth-year option, giving him two more seasons with the Bills.
Bills To Hire Cardinals’ STC Jeff Rodgers
The Bills are expected to hire Cardinals special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers for the same job on Joe Brady’s new staff in Buffalo, per The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.
Rodgers, 48, has spent the last eight seasons in Arizona with the added title of assistant head coach for the last seven. He previously served as the special teams coordinator for the Panthers (2010), Broncos (2011-2014), and Bears, (2015-2017). Before that, he worked as a special teams assistant for the 49ers (2003-2007) before his first coordinator gig with at Kansas State.
Rodgers will be replacing Chris Tabor, who was hired by the Bills last offseason after previously working for the Panthers. He overlapped with new head coach Joe Brady in Carolina, but the two will not continue working together in Buffalo. Tabor accepted an offer to be the Dolphins’ new special teams coordinator before Brady was officially name the Bills’ head coach.
Buffalo’s special teams unit received an 88.0 overall grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) in 2025. Running back Ray Davis received a first-team All-Pro nod as a returner after averaging 30.4 yards on his kick returns, the most in the league. Tabor helped keep the kicking and punting units afloat amid injuries to Matt Prater and Cameron Johnston.
Broncos Interview Ronald Curry For OC
Joe Lombardi is out as Sean Payton‘s non-play-calling OC, and while Davis Webb represents a natural promotion candidate, he remains coveted by teams for roles with more responsibility. Webb remains in the Raiders’ HC race, and the Broncos’ QBs coach is being sought by multiple teams as a play-calling option.
Payton calls the Broncos’ plays, and barring a scenario in which Webb needs to be given the call sheet to be convinced to stay in Denver, that is expected to continue. Payton has begun his second OC search with the Broncos, as the Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel reports the team has interviewed ex-Saints staffer Ronald Curry. The former NFL wide receiver spent the past two seasons as the Bills’ QBs coach.
The Broncos interviewed Curry for the job that went to Lombardi in 2023. Payton conducted a thin OC search during his first year at the helm, only interviewing Curry and Lombardi. The Rooney Rule requires teams to interview at least one external minority candidate for OC and DC positions. Because Curry is Black, the Broncos are Rooney Rule-compliant.
It would stand to reason a Webb promotion will be strongly considered, and Gabriel confirms he is a strong candidate for the role. But the Broncos are only one of the interested teams. Webb has met twice about the Raiders’ HC job, and the Giants and Ravens have sent him OC interview requests. Webb also met about the Bills’ HC job, which went to Joe Brady earlier this week. Some in the Broncos’ organization believe it will be difficult for the team to retain Webb long term with Payton calling plays, per ESPN.com’s Jeff Legwold. The coming days will put that to a test, as Denver’s QBs coach has seen his stock skyrocket during his three-year tenure.
While Webb has helped mentor Bo Nix, Curry’s first season as Bills QBs coach produced a Josh Allen MVP award. Considering that season came after the Stefon Diggs trade, the honor reflects well on Brady and Curry. The latter interviewed for the Jets’ OC position this week but has otherwise not been connected to any OC jobs since being hired by the Bills.
Curry, 46, was a college quarterback who spent eight seasons as an NFL wideout. He has extensive experience with Payton as well. The Saints employed Curry from 2016-23, with the ex-player rising to QBs coach by Payton’s final season (2021). Coaching New Orleans’ receivers before that, Curry stayed on as QBs coach under Dennis Allen from 2022-23. He interviewed for the New Orleans OC gig — which went to Klint Kubiak — in 2024, moving to Buffalo to work under ex-Saints coworker Brady soon after. Brady being promoted to HC could keep Curry in Buffalo, but that may not be a certainty just yet. For now, he is up for multiple OC positions.
Dolphins To Hire Nathaniel Hackett
Nathaniel Hackett‘s stock took a tumble for a few years, as his disastrous Broncos HC season preceded a Jets OC tenure that brought a demotion. But the second-generation NFL staffer is moving back up the ladder.
After a season back in Green Bay in an analyst role, Hackett will be called upon as a quarterbacks coach. The Dolphins are expected to hire him in this capacity, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano tweets. Hackett worked with new Dolphins HC Jeff Hafley for a season in Green Bay.
Hackett’s arrival may not go over too well in Miami, as few coaches have seen their standing drop more this decade. The former Packers OC was fired 15 games into his Broncos HC tenure, and after landing the Jets’ OC job (due in no small part to the Jets’ interest in bringing Aaron Rodgers to New York), Hackett did not complete that stay as the team’s play-caller. New York demoted Hackett from that role during the 2024 season. Hackett will now work under Dolphins play-caller Bobby Slowik, either coaching Tua Tagovailoa or a to-be-determined QB1 replacement.
The Broncos’ Hackett hire preceded a trade for Russell Wilson. The partnership sputtered, with a host of clunky outings leading to Hackett demoting himself as play-caller. Hackett gave the play sheet to QBs coach Klint Kubiak, but as Wilson exerted tremendous influence in terms of preparation and the nature of the Broncos’ offense, the team fired its coach after 15 games. The Broncos finished last in scoring offense despite authorizing Wilson’s $49MM-per-year extension, but the Jets hired Hackett soon after. Although Hackett delivered on Rodgers becoming receptive to joining the Jets, his stock tanked in the Big Apple.
Hackett’s first season featured mostly Zach Wilson at the controls, and it went bad enough Robert Saleh conducted a stealth search for a veteran staffer who would oversee his OC in 2024. No hire commenced, and Hackett entered the ’24 season as the Jets’ play-caller. Not long after the Jets’ Saleh firing, they removed Hackett from play-calling duties. Wilson is technically still under contract with the Dolphins, but the backup QB’s deal expires in March.
While Hackett was also OC in Buffalo and Jacksonville, his most successful NFL period came as Matt LaFleur‘s non-play-calling OC from 2019-21. The Packers earned three straight playoff byes, and Rodgers won MVP honors in 2020 and ’21. Rodgers has long endorsed Hackett, to the point he is believed to have interceded when Woody Johnson wanted him gone after one Jets OC season. The Dolphins will now entrust Hackett to coach their QBs. Perhaps with no play-calling duties, the Dolphins believe they will see a better version of Hackett than what the Broncos and Jets received.
Miami is also hiring former Green Bay quality control staffer Wendel Davis, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. The team is also adding Jahmile Addae as cornerbacks coach, according to ESPN.com’s Pete Thamel. Addae was most recently the Bills’ CBs coach.
Bills QB Josh Allen Undergoes Procedure On Foot
JANUARY 29: When speaking to the media today, Allen revealed (via Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic) his fifth metatarsal had been broken. Surgery did indeed take place on Monday of this week, Beane noted. A recovery timeline between eight and 10 weeks is now in store, per Wolfe’s colleague Ian Rapoport. As such, Allen should be fully recovered in time for all offseason activities.
JANUARY 22: The Bills’ press conference with owner Terry Pegula and general manager Brandon Beane drew a lot of headlines on Wednesday, but one piece of information seems to have slipped under the radar.
Beane revealed (via NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe) that star quarterback Josh Allen may undergo a procedure on his foot this offseason. It is not expected to affect his availability for OTAs.
Allen’s foot injury popped up in Week 17 and sidelined him for multiple practices in Week 18. The issue continued to hamper Allen for the rest of the season, though he did not appear to be playing with any limitations in the playoffs.
The 2024 MVP has not missed a game due to injury since his rookie year. His only absences have been games at the end of the season with the Bills’ playoff qualification and seeding already set.
Allen’s procedure should not alarm anyone in Buffalo. Even if he were to miss any offseason training time as he recovers, it seems extremely unlikely to affect his availability beyond mandatory minicamp.
Steelers Nearing Patrick Graham DC Hire
4:29pm: An official interview has not yet taken place. It is believed to be scheduled for Thursday, The Exhibit’s Josina Anderson reports. Graham landing this job would mean a fourth DC opportunity.
1:51pm: Patrick Graham served as the Raiders’ defensive coordinator under three HCs, being retained by both Antonio Pierce and Pete Carroll. With a to-be-determined Raiders HC arriving, Graham is close to landing on his feet elsewhere.
The Steelers are close to hiring him as their next DC, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac reports. Graham scheduled an interview for the position. Graham, 47, spent a year on Mike McCarthy‘s Packers staff, serving as an assistant during the new Steelers HC’s final year in Green Bay (2018). He has been a defensive coordinator ever since.
A longtime Patriots staffer, Graham reunited with Josh McDaniels as the Raiders’ DC in 2022. This came after he had served in that capacity with the Dolphins (2019) and Giants (2020-21). Two ex-Patriot HCs (Brian Flores, Joe Judge) appointed Graham to those posts, and while a third hired him when the McDaniels reunion commenced, Graham impressed enough to stick around in Las Vegas under Pierce and Carroll. He appears close to reuniting with McCarthy.
The Raiders have struggled on defense for the better part of a two-plus-decade span. They have only ranked in the top half of the league in scoring once since their Super Bowl XXXVII season. That came under Graham in 2023, when the team ranked ninth. The Raiders were unable to sustain that form over the past two seasons, ranking 25th in each campaign. The team did lose prized free agent signing Christian Wilkins early in 2024, before a contentious 2025 separation, and lost a few starters (Robert Spillane, Tre’von Moehrig, Nate Hobbs) in free agency this past offseason.
Pittsburgh had employed Teryl Austin as its DC for the past four seasons. Mike Tomlin only had three DCs in 19 seasons; Keith Butler‘s stint covered 2015-21, and Dick LeBeau‘s second Steelers stop lasted from 2004-14). Graham has also been a regular on the HC carousel. He met about the Dolphins’ HC position this year and interviewed for the Commanders’ DC job. The Jaguars met twice with Graham about their HC post last year, while the Chargers and Seahawks interviewed him in 2024.
While more staff turnover will be expected, McCarthy plans to retain a few Tomlin assistants. Quarterbacks coach Tom Arth, DBs coach Gerald Alexander and linebackers coach Scott McCurley are coming back, Dulac adds. The team was also planning to retain veteran special teams coordinator Danny Smith, according to the Pat McAfee Show‘s Mark Kaboly, but that was before the McCarthy hire became known. Smith is now the Buccaneers’ ST coordinator.
McCurley will reunite with his longtime boss, as McCarthy oversaw the veteran defensive staffer throughout his Green Bay years before bringing him to Dallas as linebackers coach in 2020. McCarthy’s first Packers season (2006) doubled as McCurley’s NFL debut. Arth has coached the Steelers’ QBs for three seasons, while Alexander has been on the team’s staff for two stops.
After coaching on Tomlin’s staff from 2022-23, he was the Raiders’ safeties coach in ’24. Tomlin rehired him in 2025. Graham coming to Pittsburgh would make for a reunion with Alexander, who has been on the DC carousel previously.
Pittsburgh is also hiring Adam Henry as its new wide receivers coach, NFL.com’s Cameron Wolfe adds. Henry spent the past three years as the Bills’ wideouts coach. He has a connection to McCarthy, having been the Cowboys’ WRs coach from 2020-21 before leaving to be Indiana’s OC for a year. Henry has also coached wideouts with the 49ers, Browns and Giants since 2015.
While the Bills struggled at the position post-Stefon Diggs, Khalil Shakir made the transition from fifth-rounder to the team’s most reliable target during Henry’s time. The 2021 Cowboys also featured three 800-yard receivers (CeeDee Lamb, Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup) in 2021.
Packers To Hire Bobby Babich As Defensive Pass Game Coordinator
After two years as Buffalo’s defensive coordinator, Bobby Babich is leaving for Green Bay. The Packers are hiring Babich as their defensive pass game coordinator/secondary, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
This closes the door on a long run in Buffalo for Babich. After joining the team in 2017, he worked in various roles (including assistant DBs coach, safeties coach and linebackers coach) under Sean McDermott for the head coach’s entire nine-year tenure.
The Bills fired McDermott after the season and promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady to replace him on Tuesday. Babich was not among the Bills’ HC candidates.
With Brady expected to pursue Jim Leonhard for defensive coordinator, it quickly became clear Babich would coach somewhere else in 2026. A day later, the 42-year-old will take over for Ryan Downard in Green Bay and assist new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon. Downard followed former Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, now the Dolphins’ head coach, to Miami earlier this month. Babich will also be replacing pass game coordinator Derrick Ansley, who is leaving the organization after losing his 2025 title, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston.
Babich, who was among the candidates Hafley beat out to become the Packers’ D-coordinator two years ago, was at the helm of the NFL’s top-ranked pass defense in 2025. The Bills also ended the year a respectable 11th in interceptions.
The Packers, meanwhile, finished 11th in pass defense and a far less impressive 28th in picks this season. They intercepted just seven passes, and Keisean Nixon was the team’s only cornerback to register an INT. Babich, known for emphasizing the importance of takeaways, will work to significantly increase the Packers’ pick total in 2026.
“We talk about it constantly, just about taking the ball away and opportunities to do that,” Babich told BuffaloBills.com last year. “Then we emphasize it in practice. We show the whole defense when we take it away in practice. We’re just constantly talking about it. It’s not just me, it’s the coaching staff and the players.”
Replacing Babich will be one of Brady’s most important tasks at the outset of his head coaching tenure in Buffalo. While the Bills may have interest in Leonhard, he’s the only potential candidate whose name has come up so far.
Bills Promote Joe Brady To HC
The Bills have elected to take the internal route regarding their head coaching position. Offensive coordinator Joe Brady has been promoted to the role, as first reported by Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. 
The news is now official, per a team announcement. This is a five-year agreement, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini adds. After a nine-year run with Sean McDermott at the helm, the Bills will hope a familiar first-time head coach will be able to get them over the hump in the postseason.
Once McDermott was fired in the wake of Buffalo’s latest divisional round loss, Brady was named as a logical replacement candidate the team knows well. Indeed, the Bills showed interest in former offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and ex-Josh Allen teammate Davis Webb while weighing their options. All three have received looks elsewhere on the market, but instead of departing Brady has elected to remain in place and take over Buffalo’s staff.
Brady interviewed twice with the Ravens and Raiders for their HC vacancies. He also arranged an in-person meeting with the Cardinals, but that will not take place. A promotion always loomed as a strong possibility in this case, and after working in Buffalo the past four years Brady will now take on a head coaching position for the first time in his career by remaining in a familiar spot.
The 36-year-old spent two seasons as a Saints assistant before joining LSU’s staff for 2019. Brady’s work with the national champions that year drew attention based on the Tigers’ remarkable offensive production and boosted his coaching stock to a large extent. It immediately landed him an OC gig with the Panthers. Things did not go according to plan during Matt Rhule‘s Carolina tenure, but Brady did not need to wait long to find a new opportunity once his two-year Panthers run came to an end. He joined the Bills in 2022 as their quarterbacks coach.
Ken Dorsey was in place as Buffalo’s offensive coordinator at the time. That remained the case until midway through the 2023 campaign, when Dorsey was fired. Brady took over for the remainder of the season and stayed in place as the team’s play-caller through 2024 and ’25. During his two full years as an OC, Buffalo ranked second and then fourth in the NFL in scoring. The Bills also posted top-10 finishes in total offense under Brady.
Expectations will no doubt remain high for the team on offense with Brady still in place and a core highlighted by Allen under contract. Buffalo remained strong as a rushing team this past season, but struggles in the passing game proved to be an issue. The Bills will presumably aim to bring in at least one notable pass-catcher this offseason, but in the meantime Brady will now turn his attention to building a staff.
An OC replacement will need to be sought out, with a decision on whether or not Brady will call plays being required as well. Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich remains in place at this time; Babich has worked as the team’s DC for the past two years but his Buffalo tenure dates back to 2017. It will be interesting to see how much Brady prioritizes experience as opposed to seeking out external options over the coming days.
As part of the decision to move on from McDermott, Bills owner Terry Pegula elected to promote general manager Brandon Beane to president of football operations. That elevated Beane’s standing in the organization and no doubt increased his sway during HC interviews. Allen also had input in the head coaching decision, and the coordinator in place from his 2024 MVP season will remain in the organization moving forward.
Candidates with a wide range of coaching experience interviewed with the Bills in the aftermath of McDermott’s dismissal. Other highly-regarded staffers such as Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak may have also received a look, but Buffalo was not eligible to speak with him until after the Super Bowl. Instead of waiting for Kubiak or any other external candidates, Pegula and Co. have decided to promote from within.